How you can nourish creativity when ideas run dry: The care and feeding of a creative kid

Sometimes, we all need an infusion to help the creative juices flow again

Recently, after a season of creating and creating and creating, I just found myself needing a little boost. I felt empty of ideas…dry…dull…blank. It’s almost like the feeling of being hungry or not getting enough sleep. Have you or your kids ever felt that way, especially when asked to make or create something? 

We cope with this brain fog by scrolling endlessly on our phones, which adds to the fog, or by putting our heads down to finish the endless round of tasks in front of us. That’s ok for a little while, but we weren’t meant to live that way for long, and neither were kids. We are created to create! God Himself is an infinitely deep, joyful, creative person who made human beings in His image to appreciate beauty and to create.

So if you want your kids to create, you must feed that creativity, as if you were watering a plant you want to grow strong and healthy. 

What can you do to encourage your kids to joyfully create? To notice and appreciate the beautiful creativity around them? It isn’t hard, but does take a tiny bit of planning. Here are 3 easy ways to grow that well of ideas to draw from when it is time to create.

Visit an art museum--including the gift shop--and notice things that catch your eye 

Last week I was privileged to get to visit San Francisco with my husband on a work trip. It was a whirlwind 3 days in the city. But, wow! What a huge blessing to infuse my spirit with lots of new sights, sounds, and smells(!) and to knock me out of some of my ruts and inspire new ideas in my head. To see what other people do and create helps generate brand new thoughts and ideas. The second day in the city, I went to the SF Museum of Modern Art.

In art museums, I love closely examining art I don’t understand as well as art I easily find beautiful at first glance. I love seeing in that artwork things I didn’t notice at first. Listening to the audio interpretations to learn more forces me to slow down and really look. And, of course, I love scrutinizing the bookstore for art books and fun gifts. Art museums stretch us to learn more about the world and the ways people experience life. They introduce us to lots of different kinds of beauty--and some art that is not beautiful at all, and is very sad (also a way of reflecting on life itself.) Seeing ways artists use shape, color, line, and different materials is eye-opening.  Museum visits stimulate all kinds of new learning and whet our appetites to create something new. Some art museums also have programs and resources for kids. Even if you can’t go to a big, famous art museum, I encourage you to check out whatever art museum or art exhibit is near your home. 

Go to the library and check out lots of books

Sometimes I need ideas, and looking online tends to overwhelm me. So I go to the library and check out real books. Kids books. Fiction. Nonfiction. I check out books on drawing and creating, and picture books with illustrations I like. Using the internet is great for researching good books, but I like to have them in my hands to actually read them and look at the pictures to be inspired. Of course, doing this pays a double benefit; when you read books you model literacy to your kids, and when they visit the library it opens their world to an endless supply of stories, new experiences, and illustrations. Creativity boosted!

Keep an inspiration box for collecting artistic papers: note cards, greeting cards, wrapping paper, gift bags, paper napkins, calendars

I love to collect interesting and beautiful papers. You can help your kids do this at home. Large cardboard shoeboxes (or the plastic kind you buy) make great containers for special papers. When I need to draw, create, or make something, I pull out some interesting paper and notice how the artist has put the design together. Kids can copy or trace designs they see, or carefully examine lines and shapes to try to re-create a design on another piece of paper freehand. They can use these art inspiration papers to build up their mental toolbox for creating. They can start with an idea they see on the wrapping paper, for example, and add their own artistic flair to the design in the sketchbook. They could cut the paper up and glue it in an interesting and new combination. They can observe what colors look great together. After having some inspiration on hand, we can have a place to start that doesn’t feel like so much of a reach--an inspiration box gives us a starting place to draw or make something artistic to counteract the sometimes intimidating white piece of paper.

Creativity takes feeding

Sometimes we all need a little energy bar of creativity. Feed your kids’ hunger by:

• taking them to a nearby art exhibit or museum

• going to the library

• starting an art paper collection box

Add a side dish of sketchbook and a dessert of colored pencils or crayons, and your child will soon be creating energetically again! Here are more easy ways to feed your kids’ creativity:

• Sign up today for July Fab Food art camp-there are 4 more spots in the morning class! (Greater Lafayette, IN area)

• Also...drum roll, please....Storygalorey Online drawing class will be coming this summer! Every lesson will build drawing skills, have a literature connection, and will boost your K-8 child’s creativity and confidence. I look forward to sharing more in the coming weeks.

Until then, feed that creativity--I know your kids are going to make the world a little more beautiful with what they create!